


RAW Emotions

by RizzV825



Category: Rizzles - Fandom, Rizzoli & Isles
Genre: F/F, Gun Violence, Homophobia, Hurt/Comfort, Racism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-27
Updated: 2020-02-27
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:01:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 19,948
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22925314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RizzV825/pseuds/RizzV825
Summary: Jane and Maura find themselves in the middle of a case involving a corner store hit. Meanwhile their oldest daughter is facing homophobia at school.
Relationships: Maura Isles/Jane Rizzoli
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Characters belong to TNT, feel free to review. Enjoy.

It's morning in the RIzzoli-Isles household, and all are going about their normal routine. Jane is just finishing up her shower, Maura is making coffee and getting ready to take their 10 month old baby Gracie to day care, and the eldest child, Nikki is getting dressed for school. She finishes fixing her hair, gathers her backpack, and goes downstairs to the kitchen. As Nikki makes her way through the kitchen, she sees her baby sister in her high chair eating Cheerios, and greets her with a kiss on her head. Then she kisses Maura's cheek before making her way to the coffee pot.

" Morning Sweetie."

" Morning." Nikki answered in a bit of a haze. Lately her parents have noticed Nikki seems withdrawn. She doesn't smile as much as she used to, and she gives one word answers.

" Are you okay?" Maura asked her.

" Hmm...yeah, I'm fine. " Nikki answered abruptly while she sipped her coffee, and made her bagel for breakfast. Maura didn't quite believe her. She knew Nikki was acting different, but as much as her parents tried, Nikki didn't want to talk about it. Jane came downstairs, and greeted her family with kisses all around.

" Good morning, all."

" Good morning, Hon." Maura said kissing her wife.

" Good morning, Mom."

" Morning, Sweetie." Jane said kissing her daughter. With both parents in the same room, Nikki knew she'd be double teamed at any moment, so she said a quick goodbye, and made her way to school. They were both concerned, and were discussing what they should do.

" I'm worried about Nikki. She seems so sad all the time." Maura told Jane.

" I know, me too. I can't even get her to talk about it. She's never avoided me. We could always talk about anything."

" What should we do?" Maura asked while placing Gracie on her hip. Jane just sighed and shook her head.

" I don't know. Hopefully she'll open up to us soon, and we can help her out." With that Jane kisses her loved ones and everyone heads out.

It was a rainy drive to school, and all Nikki could focus on was the wiper blades squeaking on the windshield. Truth be told, it was hard for Nikki to be at school lately, since being dubbed the kid with two moms. Jane and Maura started dating when Nikki was 13 and they got married a year later. Jane marrying a woman made no difference to Nikki. Maura has been in their lives a long time, and she's always felt like family. It didn't matter that her parents were two women, in her heart they were still her parents. Never had it occurred to her to think there was anything wrong with that. Nikki's friends were fine with it, and she was happy to have their support, but there was another group of kids in particular that gave Nikki a hard time. She used to think being the cop's kid was tough, but since Jane's marriage to Maura, it seems to give the kids extra ammo.

This was a group of kids led by two siblings, 16 yr old Camren Ames and his 14 yr old sister Maria. The Ames children came from a conservative background. The family used to live in Delaware before moving to Massachusetts two years ago. Their mother Lyn was a homemaker, and their father, Raymond was a local youth pastor. Needless to say they didn't grow up in an environment learning a lot of tolerance. Camren has already found himself in hot water last year for using the "N" word. He would have had his teeth knocked out, had the principal not been around the corner. The kids had grown up being told homosexuality was immoral, and they fed into every bit of intolerance thrown their way. Nikki stopped in front of her best friend, Thereasa's house to give her a ride to school. She ran down the walkway with her hood over her head over her head, and hopped in her friend's car.

"Hey." Thereasa greeted.

" Hi."

Thereasa knew some of the kids gave Nikki a hard time in school, but Nikki didn't like talking about it. She knew her friends loved her and offered their support. They were always willing to stick up for her, but for the most part they didn't really get it, not being in the situation themselves. Thereasa wished she knew how to help her best friend.

" Lovely spring weather we're having, huh ?" Thereasa said adjusting her hair in the mirror.

" Yeah, I guess."

" You okay?" Thereasa asked her.

" Yeah, I'm fine." Nikki answered continuing toward school. Thereasa could see the school situation was really bothering her friend, and she attempted to get Nikki to talk about it.

" Hey Nikki listen those kids are jerks, especially Camren. He just likes to hear himself talk, you know that right?"

" Yeah." 

" You'll always have your friends. We'll stand up for you against those idiots, don't worry."

" I know, thank you." Nikki smiles. In an effort to make her feel better, Thereasa changes the subject to a lighter note.

" So did I tell you I saw Alex Ryder get pantsed yesterday?" Thereasa told her. Nikki raised her eyebrows looking toward her friend almost laughing.

" Really? That track star you've been obsessing over lately?"

" Yeah, I was walking to English, and one of his buddies came up, and yanked his pants down. Thankfully for him only a few people seemed to notice." The two girls giggled at the thought of the athlete in his underwear. Thereasa has liked him for some time, and this incident was an unexpected surprise.

" So...boxers or briefs?" Nikki asked.

" Tidy whities." Both girls start to laugh.

" Ow man. Did you get a good look at him?"

" Oh yeah. He has a pretty nice backside if I do say so myself."

Nikki had a good laugh, and she needed it. Leave it to Thereasa to always find a way to add levity to the situation. Now they were at school, and it was time for Nikki to face whatever awaited her.

" Well, time to enter the gauntlet."

" I have your back, don't worry."

" Thank you."

The girls walk through campus and in the building. They made idle chit chat with some friends along the way before making it to their lockers. So far so good for Nikki. She has yet to run into any of her adversaries, but the day wasn't over yet. She knew she'd have to face them sooner or later. Nikki and Thereasa had different first period classes, so they bid one another goodbye, Thereasa wishing Nikki good luck, and they headed off to class.

Meanwhile the homicide unit has arrived on a crime scene at a Rawlings Grocery, where two employees were shot to death, and a customer was injured. CSRU made their way around the store dusting for prints, marking shell casings from shot fired, and taking pictures. Det. Frost gathered the security footage to go through at headquarters. Maura is looking over the bodies, and Jane is talking to the customer who is being treated for the cut above his right eyebrow.

" What happened when they came in the store?"

" I was at the counter paying for my coffee when one of them hit me in the head and I heard shooting. By the time I was able to get up, the employees were both dead."

" Did you see the shooter?" Jane asked him.

" They were both covered head to toe in black. I couldn't see their faces. The one that hit me looked pretty big. I could only make out black boots on both of them as they were leaving."

" Did either of them say anything?"

" No they just came in, shot up the place, and left."

" Okay, thank you." Jane and Frost discussed the crime scene, both puzzled by it.

" Does this crime scene look a little odd to you? I mean, who just bursts in a store, ransacks the place, leaves two men dead, and doesn't take the money out of the register?" Jane wondered.

" You think it may be a hit?" Frost asked.

" It certainly looks that way. The question is by who, and why."

The evidence homicide needed was gathered up, and the bodies were brought back to the morgue. Maura began the first autopsy, while Jane and Frost reviewed the security footage.

It is now third period, and so far Nikki has made it through her day without incident. She is on her way to class when she sees her friend, Olivia in the hallway. Olivia is another close friend of Nikki's. The two met in Junior High, and they both play soccer for school.

" Hey Livi."

" Hey Nikki, how've you been?"

" Okay, I guess." Nikki shrugged grimly. This has been a problem for Nikki since the start of the school year, and her friends are concerned.

"Thereasa told me what happened yesterday. Those kids are assholes. I wish there was more the school would do about it, besides reprimand them."

" Yeah, that would be nice." Nikki said.

Many students had problems with the Ames children. They seemed to want to look for anybody that was a little different, and make them feel bad about it. Camren had been suspended for fighting a few times, but other than that the attitude of the school seemed to be that kids will be kids. There was not much done to stop their behavior. Several people have been subjected to having their house toilet papered, among other acts of destruction, but as of yet they haven't found themselves in legal trouble. The two girls head down the hallway to class when they see Camren, Maria, and the rest of their creations around the corner. Nikki shuts her eyes tight and sighs.

" Perfect."

Nikki and Olivia attempted to walk past them unnoticed, but it didn't work as well as they might have hoped. Camren was first to approach them with his sister close behind.

" Hey look. The dyke baby found herself a body guard." Camren said leaning on the lockers in front of them.

" Look, I don't want any trouble, okay? I'm just heading to class." Nikki told them as she walked past, but that didn't stop Camren from continuing to taunt her.

" So, I've gotta know. Were you a test tube baby or were you shopped for on the internet?" Olivia turned to them in defense of her friend.

" Why don't you two find something better to do, and leave my friend alone." This time it was Maria who retorted with her own hateful words.

" Why don't you tell Mommy and Daddy, we're in America, learn some English." Olivia didn't say anything, she just looked at the floor. This got Nikki angry, and she stepped toward Maria, only to be stopped by Olivia.

" You don' t talk shit about my friend. You understand me, you stupid bitch?" Nikki snarled at her.

"Nikki, its okay, lets just go." Olivia led her friend away, and Nikki stormed off in the other direction. She was fed up with constantly being harassed, and hearing her friend being tormented really got to her.

" I really can't stand them anymore." Nikki said.

" I know. Like I said, they're assholes."

" Hey, I'm sorry you had to deal with them trying to defend me."

" It's okay. Don't sweat it." Olivia told her.

" I feel bad."

" Don't. That's what friends do. We watch out for each other."

" Thanks Livi."

Nikki wasn't the only one having problems lately with Camren and Maria, Olivia was too. Olivia was adopted at age six. Her mother, Nila is Iranian and her father, Samuel is Venezuelan. About a month ago, Nila was picking Olivia up from school, and the Ames kids saw them. While she passed them, Nila was talking to her mother on the phone in Farsi. Since then Camren and Maria have taunted Olivia, saying awful things about her family. Olivia was used to some people looking at her family funny, but these kids took things too far, and it hurt her to see Nikki so upset.

Back at BPD while Det. Frost was reviewing the corner store's security footage, Jane was downstairs with Maura working on the first autopsy of the store's owner. Sachit Desai, 62 yrs old lay upon the medical examiner's table with a gunshot wound to the back of the head and two to his right shoulder blade. Maura explained that the first shot to the head killed him instantly, and he was likely killed before having any idea of what was going on. The store owner's son, Malhar Desai, 31 was shot twice in the chest coming out of the back. The weapons used were likely semi - automatic rifles as determined by the type of bullets found in both men. As Maura went over their injuries and made notes, Frost came downstairs after watching the security footage wanting Jane to look at it, and get her opinion.

" Jane, I just watched the footage of the shooting. There's something very odd about it. You should come take a look at it."

Jane followed Frost upstairs, and the two began watching the tape of the shooting. The witness was at the counter paying for his coffee as he stated he was, then the store owner gave him his change and turned away from him when suddenly the witness was hit and knocked to the floor, and the store owner was shot three times. The two gunmen then proceeded to knock shelves over, before seeing the other victim come from the back, and shooting him twice in the chest, then fleeing the scene. Nothing was stolen from the store, no money or equipment or anything which confirmed this shooting was a hit. Still something seemed odd about it.

" They come in destroying the place, they kill the two employees, but leave the customer alive. Why wouldn't they kill him too? Why leave someone to testify?" Frost wondered. Jane pondered what they'd just watched, and came to an interesting conclusion.

" He's white." Jane said.

" The witness?"

" Yeah, that's why he was only incapacitated, and the two employees were killed. I think we may be looking at a hate crime."

It's now fifth period, and Nikki is heading to lunch. She's walking down the hallway with Thereasa when she meets up with her boyfriend, Matt. He greets her with a hug, and kisses the top of her head. Matt can tell already Nikki has had a trying morning, and hopes to be able to cheer her up.

" Hey Sweetie, you doing okay?" Matt asked her. Nikki just shrugged her shoulders. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know how to get these kids to leave her alone, but she was also tired of being a bummer all the time. Nikki didn't want others to feel responsible to deal with her problems.

" She's been having a rough couple of days lately. Those idiots keep giving her shit every day." Thereasa explained.

" Yeah, and now we've got to eat with them too." Nikki said. She knew Camren and Maria had the same lunch period, and she wished she could runaway and not face them in that cafeteria.

" I won't let those assholes bother you, I promise. They come near you, they'll have to deal with me." Matt told Nikki.  
Matt and Nikki started dating the middle of freshmen year. He was a really nice kid, and Nikki's parents liked him. Matt was laid back and easy to talk to which put Nikki at ease. He's always been very sweet, and really cared for Nikki. He wasn't about to let anyone give his girlfriend a hard time, and make her feel bad about herself.

As the three of them entered the lunch line, they could see Camren and Maria at their table. Camren smirked when he saw Nikki, but he caught Matt glaring at him, and he didn't have anything to say. Camren would never admit it, but he was a bit afraid of Matt. He talked a big game, but knew Matt wouldn't hesitate to knock him out to protect his girlfriend. The group at Camren's table just stared and whispered. So far it looked like there wouldn't be trouble, but you never could tell what they'd be up to. Many kids had problems with this group, and always had their guard up. Nikki has had a problem with these kids for awhile, but didn't want to tell her parents. She knew if her mother got wind of what these kids subjected her to, she'd come storming into school livid, and she feared it would make things worse, and put a bigger target on her back. Nikki, Matt, and Thereasa had their food, and were heading back to their table when they were met with their friend, Ty.

" Hey, what's good, Homies?"

" Hey Ty." Matt greeted him.

Ty was someone who marched to the beat of his own drummer. He was a little bit hip hop, a little bit skater boy, and definitely the class clown. One time he got in trouble for dancing on the teacher's desk when she'd stepped out for a moment. He found himself in detention after school, but it did make everyone laugh. Ty used to date Olivia, and even after they broke up, they still remained friends. He was always a friend to everyone, and good when you needed a laugh.

" Matty, you get my text last night?"

" Yeah, I found the Mass Effect cheat codes, and sent the site to you." Matt told him.

" Cool thanks. My internet was down last night, and the Xbox Live wasn't working."

The two boys talked video games and playfully teased one another about who had their ass handed to them. The high school environment these days was never without two guys discussing video games, the achievements they unlocked, and who beat who. Sometimes it was hard to tell if these boys had matured much past the age of ten. In the midst of their discussion the kids noticed Camren still staring at them, and whispering to his friends. Ty being who he was, wasn't about to let that go unnoticed.

" What are you looking at, shit stain?" Ty asked Camren. Matt was quick to try and defuse the situation, and try to avoid causing a scene.

" Ty, come on, Dude. Don't pay any attention to them."

Camren found this interaction between the two friends amusing, and felt compelled to take yet another jab at them.

" That's right. Keep your boy in line."

Most people were either upset by what Camren had to say or they tried to ignore him completely. Ty however didn't like to let anything like that bring him down, and accepted the challenge of offering a cleaver retort. Ty walked over to the table leaning into Camren looking in the direction of his friend, Mikey to whom he'd been whispering to.

" So uhm... since we're all talking about our boys, aren't you gonna introduce us to yours?" Camren looked away not saying anything. He couldn't think of anything to say that wasn't cliché or that wouldn't make him look stupid.

" It seems to me you and your pal are a little more chummy than we all thought, with you here whispering sweet nothings in his ear." Ty told him. Camren immediately stood up with his sister standing behind him.

" I ain't no fag, man." Camren attempted to be intimidating, but this act only served to amuse Ty further.

" Oh look guys. He's trying to act tough." Maria piped in taking a shot at Nikki.

" Hey Dyke baby, you let these guys do all your talking for you?"

Nikki didn't say anything. She was tired of this day to day, and she just wanted it to stop. She thought if she just let them say what they had to, and didn't pay it attention that they would leave her alone, but it didn't seem to work. Even though Nikki ignored them most of the time, Camren and Maria could see she was visibly bothered by it, and they took her silence as fear. Thereasa came to Nikki's defense against Maria.

" Hey nobody was talking to you, alright!" Thereasa snapped which earned a middle finger from Maria. Ty walked over to her and patted the top of her head.

"Look at you putting up your middle finger, how cute. Did you come up with that all by yourself?"  
As soon as Ty patted Maria's head, she swatted his arm away.

"Shut up, Asshole!" Maria yelled at Ty.  
Matt got between them and started to push Ty away. 

" Come on, Man. Let's just go." Ty winked at the group of kids before heading back to the table with his friends.  
Nikki just shook her head. She knew Ty meant well, but she hated having something started with the Ames kids. The kids sat around the table. Nikki sits and slumps down while Ty tries to cheer her up.

" Hey don't let them bother you. They think they're bad ass, but they're not. They're just ignorant assholes." Ty told her. Nikki gave a weary smile, but found it hard to be optimistic.

" Look, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I really wish you wouldn't sometimes."

" With all the shit they put people through, they deserve what they get. I'd just like to see you stand up for yourself."

" I don't want to stoop to their level." Nikki told him. She huffed and covered her face with her hands. Matt laid his hand on her shoulder, comforting her.

" Why don't you tell your parents what's going on?"

" Because I know my mom. I tell her, she'll come storming into school, and get into it with the principal, and I really don't feel like making things worse. I just...I don't know what to do."

Nikki was at her wits end, and truly at a loss for what to do. She'd considered telling her parents so many times. This problem obviously wouldn't go away on its own, and Nikki couldn't continue to do nothing. Still she had that fear that telling her parents would make things worse, not just for her, but her whole family. Nikki has heard many horror stories about kids being beat up for being gay, and she knows Camren and been known to express his beliefs violently. The last thing she wanted was to draw more attention to herself by having her police officer mother coming to school angry after hearing how her daughter's been treated.

The team at BPD was tirelessly going through pictures in their case file of the crime scene, and rewatching the security footage to try to catch something they might have missed before. They as of yet knew little about the two gunmen who were covered head to toe in black on the video. Both wore ski masks, long black jackets, black pants, and work boots. According to the shoe prints recovered from the scene, one had a size ten boot, and the other a size twelve. After watching the video several times, and slowing down shots, Frost finally saw something that might be helpful.

" Here, come take a look at this." Frost showed Jane and Korsak a frozen shot of one of the gunmen pushing over a shelf. His wrist was visible, along with part of a tattoo.

" It could be some sort of insignia." Korsak said.

" Or letters. Looks like a "W" on the end here, and another letter that isn't quite visible." Frost said looking to his computer for all known gangs that inhabited the area.  
They were able to tell from the gunman's wrist that he was white, reaffirming their suspicion of a hate crime against the Indian store proprietors. Frost continued to search through endless websites of gangs and hate groups until he stumbled on what looked like a possible suspect. It was a group called "RAW", whose letters stood for " Revolution Aryan Warriors " and they were affiliated with Neo-Nazis. A side by side comparison was done, and the tattoo was a match to the group's insignia. This was a group known for their extreme racism, and hatred of those in different cultures. They have acted out violently before, and were responsible for many arsons and shootings like this one. The team gathered their intel, and prepared to search for those affiliated with this group.

It was the end of another school day, and the Ames family was gathered around the table for dinner. Their mother Lyn was cleaning up the food to be put away as they were nearly done, while Raymond Ames spoke to his children about their day at school.

" I got a phone call from a teacher at school about you, Camren. She tells me about an altercation you had in the hallway this morning." Camren just kind of scoffed at it, remembering what his father was referring to .

" She's overreacting, Dad. I was just kidding around with the freak."

" Who is this?" Raymond asked, to which Maria clarified for her father.

" The girl in school who has two moms." Maria told him. Raymond was puzzled, but continued to listen as Camren went on with his tirade.

" She's so weird. She's completely gothed out. This girl always wears black and has her hair colored, and she hangs out with complete weirdoes."

Although Raymond may have been equally appalled by someone of this nature, he still didn't condone his children bullying others, and wasn't ashamed to tell them so.

" Well it's no wonder, look where she comes from. Still that's no reason to be hostile towards a fellow classmate. After all, what does our lord say? I know you know."

The youth pastor of course was never without a bible verse of two at dinner. The two were good Christians who attended church regularly, but sometimes they wished they could turn the pastor off at home, yet the two still begrudgingly obliged their father.

" Do unto others as you'd have them do unto you." The two quoted in unison.

"That's right. Now that poor girl needs saving, okay not scolding. Don't think I don't believe you two have the right to your opinion, this is America after all. I just don't want you to be in too much trouble with the school. Understand?"

" Yes Sir." The two answered.  
In his mind, Raymond had the right attitude. His speech was mostly his way of making himself feel like a responsible father, keeping his children's attitude in check. Deep down, this man was as repulsed by homosexuality as his children were. He's openly admitted that he thought people who protested against things like gay marriage and abortion were just good Americans expressing their opinion. He would never out and out give his children permission to harass other people, but deep inside he would always find a way to justify their actions.

Nikki was finally at home and was relieved. She didn't have much homework, so she was able to finish it in study hall. All she wanted to do now was head downstairs and work out her frustrations on her drum kit. Nikki had been playing the drums since she was eight. As a child she tinkered around with an old drum set of Frankie's that was left behind at his mother's house. Nikki would often practice in the garage when she would visit her grandmother, and over the years, she became quite good at it. Nikki has also modified the kit adding two extra toms, an array of cymbals, and of course no heavy metal kit would be complete without a double pedal for the kick drum. The nice thing about living at Maura's was that she was able to have her drum kit at home now. Nikki sat at her drums, plugged in her iPod, and began to play. She'd chosen the Evanescence song "Farther Away." It was one of her favorite bands, and an awesome song to drum to. Drumming was something Nikki enjoyed as well as a cathartic way for her to relieve tension. Her grandmother would have the baby for a little while longer, so this gave Nikki some time to have the house to herself. She finished her song, and went upstairs to grab a drink from the fridge, and flopped down in front of the TV. Nikki sat quietly on the couch aimlessly flipping through the channels with Jo Friday at her side. After about twenty minutes, Angela came through the door with Gracie, and Nikki made it an effort to put on the best happy act possible. Even though Angela meant well, she could be smothering at times, and Nikki wasn't in the mood for cheering up right now.

" Hi Sweetie." Angela greeted while placing Gracie in her playpen.

" Hi Nanny." Nikki answered turning to face her grandmother in the kitchen. She smiled, determined not to show any signs of distress. Angela walked over and kissed her granddaughter on the top of her head.

" How was school today, Honey?"

" Good." It was all she said and was going to say, and Nikki hoped she could avoid the subject.

" Your mothers will be home in about a half hour. I thought I'd start dinner for you girls. How does chicken alfreado sound to you?"

"It sounds good, Nanny." Nikki helped by setting the table while Angela started dinner, and fed Gracie. Soon Jane and Maura arrived home, and were delighted to have a nice dinner after working their case. Family time is important when being in this line of work, and the two mothers wanted to savor any moment they could share a nice meal with their children. Nikki sat and ate quietly while her family talked about their day. Angela talked about her day with the baby, Jane and Maura talked a little about reviewing evidence and interviewing people, and Nikki was so far successful at communicating with brief answers. As soon as dinner was over, and all was cleaned up, Nikki made a b-line for her room to bid this day adieu, but not before her mother checked in on her.

" Hey kiddo, you doing okay? You were awfully quiet at dinner."

" I'm fine." Nikki answered. She stood their fidgeting, hoping her mother would believe her. She knew her family cared, and would help her with any problem she had, but Nikki felt like she just couldn't. There was a big part of her that wanted to. Dealing with these kids' day in and day out was wearing on her, and she badly wanted it to stop. Still Nikki feared making a bad situation worse, and she chose to keep quiet about it. Jane however suspected there was something wrong that her daughter wasn't telling her.

" Are you sure? Sweetheart, you know you can tell me anything that's wrong."

" Nothing's wrong, Mom. I'm just tired and I want to go to bed. " Nikki told Jane not looking at her. Jane was confused, but for now let it go, and kissed her daughter goodnight. Nikki climbed into bed and laid awake staring at the ceiling. She had no Idea what she wanted to do about this. She knew she'd have to go to school and face them tomorrow, and she wished she had the courage to tell someone that could help her. For tonight she could sleep, and put this behind her, but tomorrow was another day.


	2. Chapter 2

Nikki left for school quickly and quietly again this morning. She didn't get much sleep last night, and her stomach was in knots anticipating the day ahead of her. The only thing she grabbed for breakfast was a granola bar. It was the only thing Nikki could stand to eat this morning, and it got her out of the house quickly. Nikki drove toward Thereasa's house in a haze. She blocked her mind of all thoughts, and the only thing she was aware of was the sound of her own chewing. The whole drive, Nikki was fighting the urge to cry. She'd been wrestling with the decision of whether or not to talk to someone about her problems at school, and it frustrated her to feel so lost. Soon the urge to cry won as Nikki sat at a stop light with her hand covering her face while her tears flowed freely. It was a release that needed to happen since Nikki had been holding so much in, and she just let herself cry. She was brought back to reality when the light changed, and Nikki heard a honk behind her. She took a deep breath and wiped her tears, trying to pull herself together as she was close to Thereasa's place. She stopped in front of the house, and Thereasa hopped in noticing immediately her friend was distressed, even though she tried to hide it.

" Hey Nikki, you okay?" Nikki sniffled and took a deep breath to cover up that she'd been crying.

" Yeah, I'm okay." It didn't work. It was obvious Nikki was upset, and Thereasa knew it. She laid a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder.

" Hey, have you been crying?"

"No." She was choked up and tearful even as she said it, and knew she could no longer hide it. Thereasa immediately pulled her into a hug. Nikki buried her face in her friend's shoulder, and cried while Thereasa rubbed her back.

" Nikki, you need to tell somebody, hon. you can't go on like this."

"I'm scared." Nikki sobbed. Thereasa lifted Nikki's head so she could look at her.

" Listen, I understand why you don't want to tell your parents, and I get that, but I do think you should go to the principal or a teacher or something."

" I'm really afraid it'll make things worse." Nikki said wiping away tears.

" Well things certainly aren't getting any better the way they are now. You need to figure something out for your own sanity. Just think about what I said, okay."

" Okay." Nikki sniffled and nodded, while Thereasa gave her a hug.

" You know I love you, right? You're my best friend, and I hate to see you cry."

" I know, thank you." Nikki didn't know what she'd do without Thereasa.   
It was times like these when you need your best friend for a hug and some words of encouragement. Nikki knew Thereasa was right, she couldn't go on like this. She just wasn't quite sure who she was going to talk to. The two of them arrived at school, and Nikki was mostly calmed down. She wasn't about to let those kids see her cry, and allow them to tease her more. She hoped to at least get to class without running into them. Besides lunch, Nikki had one class with Maria, but none with Camren which she was thankful for. If she could minimalize her contact in the hallways, maybe she could get through her day. Thereasa walked Nikki all the way to her first period class before bidding her goodbye. Thereasa placed her had on Nikki's shoulder, reassuring her.

" Hey, it's gonna be okay." Thereasa told her.  
Nikki nodded and quietly sat in her seat. She still had no idea who she was going to talk to about her problems at school, and she didn't know how they'd plan on helping her. She was worried the principal would merely reprimand them, and teachers typically instructed kids to just work it out. Nikki just sighed, and needed more time to think about this. Whoever she talked to needed to be someone who would understand, and know what to do, and more importantly she wanted to avoid as long as possible, involving her parents.

The team at BPD sat around the squad room researching this group they'd came to know as RAW. So far they knew members of this group gathered in New York and parts of Massachusetts. They were careful to keep hidden, and many gangs were known to occupy small businesses in town, and congregate underground. Korsak did some digging, and found case files of two prior arsons committed by this group. They were confirmed RAW hits, but the members responsible were never apprehended. As they went over the case files, the team wanted to make comparisons, and talk to the victims of the prior arsons. Maura listened along with Jane, while standing behind the detective, stroking a strand of her hair. The two were often affectionate at work, and everyone was used to it. Jane and Maura have always been close even before they were officially together, so it was no big deal to see this behavior. It was a common occurrence for these two to exchange a pat on the back or the knee in passing, fuss with the other's hair, or give a kiss on the cheek before returning to work. After awhile it wasn't something anybody thought about, and it made for a comfortable work environment for them.

Nikki was in her English class trying to focus on the lesson, and copy down the notes the teacher was writing on the board. However focusing was hard as she shared this class with Maria and Camren's friend, Mikey Dualt. Nikki had been convinced that if she could be the strong one, ignore those kids, and focus on the teacher, that they would get bored, and not bother her anymore. It was no use as Nikki could feel them staring at her the whole time. Nikki sat in the second seat in the second row from the door, Maria sat two seats behind her, and Mikey sat in the third seat of the first row. Both of them were far enough away to remain inconspicuous, but close enough to torment Nikki at will. Mikey and Maria would periodically whisper comments back and forth, and snicker. When that got boring, Mikey resorted to crumpling small bits of paper and flicking them at Nikki while she tried to ignore them, but Mikey wasn't having it. When a piece hit her elbow, Nikki looked back at Mikey, which earned a mischievous smirk from him. When the bell rang, Nikki was first out of the room trying to avoid any confrontation, but Mikey and Maria caught up with her, and she was without any friends around to protect her. Nikki didn't look at them, and hoped they'd just go away, but it didn't happen that way, and Mikey was first to start in on her.

" So what, you can look at me in class, but you have nothing to say, huh? Come on, you know you want this." Mikey told Nikki while reaching out, and grabbing her ass. Nikki quickly turned away from him.

" Please just leave me alone." Nikki pleaded.

" What's the matter, you don't like when guys touch you? Are you a homo too?" Maria asked. Nikki bit her lip, trying not to cry in front of them. She looked away not saying anything. She knew anything she could say wouldn't deter them, so she tried to just walk away, but Mikey blocked her.

" She asked you a question, gay baby. Are you a filthy rug muncher like your mother?" Nikki was upset and trembling, but tried her hardest to stand her ground. She looked right at him gritting her teeth.

" Get away from me." Nikki snarled.   
Out of nowhere Mikey was pelted in the back of the head with a tennis ball, and quickly turned around to see a small ponytailed girl wearing green cargo pants and an oversized gray hoodie standing behind him.

" Leave her alone, dickhead." Mikey turned and chuckled at the young girl who was already prepared with another tennis ball in hand.

" Oh yeah, what are you gonna do about it, tiny?" Mikey was a foot taller than her, but she certainly didn't seem worried.

" Please bitch, I'll tear your fucking balls off." Maria decided she'd try to be intimidating, and stepped up to her.

" Why don't you mind your own business." Maria told her while the girl laughed in her face.

"Do you really think you can scare me?" Maria was about to retort when a teacher heard the commotion in the hallway.

" Is there a problem out here?"

" Not yet."

" Alright everyone, let's head off to class now." The teacher told them. Mikey and Maria relented, feeling it better to avoid trouble with a teacher, and everyone headed to class.

" Thanks." Nikki told her savior.

" Don't mention it."   
Nikki's savior was Jessie Rodgers, Ty's younger sister. They met freshmen year when Ty was dating Olivia. Jessie was spunky and comical much like her brother, and she got along well with Nikki and her friends.

" You doin okay?" Jessie asked.

" Not lately." Nikki told her shrugging her shoulders.

"Those assholes have nothing better to do with their day. Good thing for them that teacher came out before I was forced to kick both their asses." Jessie stated confidently.

" Yeah, but then you would get in trouble."

" I don't care. It'd be worth it to get in a few shots on those dicks."

Jessie was not one to be underestimated. She stood a mere 5ft 2in and was 90lbs, but she was a scrappy fighter. She'd been in fights before; some of them with guys, and managed to leave one of them with a broken nose. There was no doubt there would be hell to pay had that teacher not intervened.

Jane and Maura are having lunch at the Dirty Robber. They discussed the case some, although Maura did most of the talking. All Jane could focus on was Nikki, and how worried she was for her. Growing up she told her mother everything. It's the kind of relationship Jane wanted to have with her daughter, and to have her feel she could share anything. It puzzled Jane that Nikki suddenly seemed secretive lately, and she just wanted to help her. Jane sat there eating french fries, and Maura could tell her mind was somewhere else.

" Sweetie, you okay?"

" Hm...uh...yeah, I'm fine." There was truly no lying to Dr. Isles, and she knew Jane was lying.

" No, you're not."

" You're right, I'm not. I'm really worried about Nikki. I can't get her to talk to me. We used to talk about everything."

" She will, Jane. She knows you're here for her." Maura told Jane taking her hand. The detective smiled, and gave her hand a squeeze back.

" You're sure about this, huh?"

" I know so."

" I thought you never made definitive conclusions without the proper research."

" Trust me, I know the two of you. She'll come to you in her own time."

" I'm glad you're sure." Jane was still worried, but was willing to trust Maura, and give Nikki the time she needed.

Nikki arrived home, and just wanted to forget about her day at school. She'd been thinking about her situation, and was considering talking to her parents. Nikki Had gone through every other alternative in her head, and it seemed going to her mom was her only choice. As she walked in the house, she saw her mom and Maura snuggled together on the couch watching TV. The two of them looked so calm and content together, and at that moment Nikki lost her nerve.

" Hey honey, how was school today?" Jane asked looking over her shoulder.

" It was good." Nikki answered while grabbing a snack, and making her way to her bedroom. Jane tried to ask her more questions about her day, but Nikki just gave short answers so that she could make a quick exit. Nikki was frustrated with herself. She was all ready to go talk about what's been happening at school, and after seeing her parents calm and comfortable for once, she didn't want to spoil it. Work was certainly hectic enough for them without having to deal with problems at home too. Nikki loved her family very much no matter what other people said, and it meant alot to her in that moment to just let her parents enjoy each other. Thank goodness the weekend was here, and Nikki could finally get a break.


	3. Chapter 3

Olivia is sitting on her front steps watching her ten year old brother, Luis shoot baskets in the front yard. Their mother was inside grading term papers, and their father was giving a lecture at the college. Both parents were college professors at BCU and had a demanding work schedule, so Olivia was often asked to keep an eye on her little brother. Luis was also adopted. When Olivia was seven, her parents adopted him from Puerto Rico as a baby. Everyone in the house was of a different ethnicity, but the differences between them never mattered, they were still a family.

When Luis was outside playing, Olivia liked to keep an eye on things. They lived down the street from the Ames home, and their reputation scared Olivia. She's heard about Camren's fights and harassing people, and she wasn't going to let anything happen to her brother. So far everything was okay until Luis decided he wanted to ride his bike around, and then Olivia was concerned.

"Hey where are you going?"

"Tell Mommy I'm riding my bike to Drew's house."

Luis's friend Drew lived in between their house and the Ames home, so it made Olivia nervous when the boys would ride their bikes around with nobody constantly watching him. She tried to make a suggestion to deter him from going that way.

"Why doesn't Drew come over here instead?"

" Cause I wanna go to his house. What's the big deal, Livi?" Inside Olivia knew the reason, but she didn't want to tell him why. He was a little boy who didn't need to deal with all this drama, and she didn't want to have him face such hateful people. She mustered up the best excuse she could think of.

" Cause...cause I miss you." Olivia told him.

" Liar."

" What, you're my little brother, you don't think I miss you. We're both at school all day, and we hardly get to hang out."

" Yeah I know. I just wanna hang out with my friend. I wanna be outside." Olivia sighed, and bit her lip. She was out of excuses at this point, and didn't know what else to say.

" Okay, I'll walk with you."

" Whatever." Luis just shrugged his shoulders and started peddling toward Drew's house. Olivia walked along, but the only thing she could pay attention to was the front door to the Ames home. She watched for any movement or anyone that might be watching. About half way there, the front door popped open, and Olivia's heart jumped into her throat. It was only their father quickly throwing a bag of trash outside, but it was enough to rattle her. Olivia tried to calm herself as Luis made it up the Drew's driveway, and she said goodbye.

" Okay Luis, be careful and have fun."

" Bye Livi." Olivia headed home still nervous, but at least Luis was safe inside his friend's house. It was nerve wrecking living down the street from the Ames kids. School was bad enough, but around the neighborhood was certainly a lot of pressure with a little boy to worry about.

Jane and Korsak were talking to a man named Marco Chavez, who was the owner of a Havana in town that had fallen victim to one of the arsons that happened six weeks ago. He explained how it took a long time to get the place restored, and how they've been victim to robbery committed by gang members before the fire. The case file from the arson stated that at 12:15am on a Thursday, a black Chevy Blazer with the license plate covered, pulled up to the store. A cloaked person tossed a brick through the glass door, and lit a road flare, then threw it inside before speeding away from the scene. A resident from the apartment building across the street saw the flames and called 911. Luckily the fire department arrived on time before any neighboring buildings caught fire, and no one was in the store at the time. Mr. Chavez was beside himself when he got the news that his store was on fire, and couldn't imagine what would motivate someone to do this to him. At first the arson didn't appear to be motivated by hate until two weeks later when an Indian restaurant in 3rd street was burned down, and the same type of black SUV with covered plates was seen fleeing the scene. The cases seemed too similar to be considered isolated incidents. Upon leaving both fires, those in the SUV drove off chanting "Rahowa!" which was later confirmed to be part of this hate group's mantra. Now with the shooting, this group wasn't only guilty of destroying private property, they were murderers, and now homicide units were involved. Since no prints were left on the road flares at either store, and all they had at this point was a few shoe prints and some recovered bullets, their next stop was to try to find out where a significant amount of road flares were purchased, and see if they could get a positive ID.

It's early afternoon in the Rizzoli - Isles home. Nikki is hanging out in the living room watching her little sister, Gracie play on her baby blanket. She wasn't in the mood for going out or being around people. She just wanted a quiet day at home with her family. Gracie is ten months old, and just starting to walk, and a part of Nikki envied that her life was so simple. There was no anxiety, no confrontation with other people for her to deal with, and she was happy to just play and receive hugs and kisses from the family. However Gracie won't be a baby forever. She will someday grow up, and go to school with other kids that may not readily accept her family, which worried NIkki. She hoped for her baby sister to make friends with good kids, and that Gracie won't have to face the same adversity that Nikki is facing now. Jane soon comes in from her run, and greets her daughters.

" Hey, how are my girls doing?" Jane asked while grabbing a water from the fridge, and flopping down on the couch.

" We're doing good." Nikki answered. Gracie crawled over to the coffee table and propped herself up, before making her way over to her mother. Jane scooped Gracie up on her lap, and kissed her cheek.

" How are you my little one? Are you hanging out with your big sister?"

" I remember when she was like a weeble. I can't believe she's walking already." Nikki told her. She tried to keep the conversation light and about Gracie. The weekend was going well for Nikki so far. She's been able to relax and not focus on her stress, and her homework was minimal which she was able to be finished in study hall. Still she was frustrated that she didn't have the courage to talk to her mom about her troubles at school. Nikki always went to her mom with problems, and knew she'd do whatever she could to help her. With this problem, what could Jane really do besides talk to the principal? It would likely not stop these kids from harassing Nikki, but only increase the problem. Jane noticed Nikki lost in her thoughts, and tried to encourage her to talk.

" You look like you have a lot on your mind. Is there anything you want to talk about?"

Nikki sat up not wanting to look at her mom, and she just stared at the floor fussing with the hem of her jeans. "Uhm..I'm fine, Mom. Just, ya know...long week I guess."

Nikki wanted to be able to explain herself, but she could do nothing but stammer and continue to back pedal when her mother called attention to her recently changed demeanor. She knew Jane could sense that there was something wrong, and Nikki didn't suspect her mother knew she was lying when claiming she'd just had a long week, but she didn't know how to say it.

" Are you sure that's all that's bothering you, Sweetie? If there's something I can help you with, honey you know I will."

Nikki took a deep breath, and she was almost in tears. She knew her mother cared about her so much, and that what she said was true. She would do anything to help Nikki, which is what worried her.

" I..I'm just..." Nikki sighed before she continued. " I guess I'm just ready for a school holiday or something. I need a breather. It's really okay though, Mom. I think I've just been working too hard."

Jane wrapped an arm around her daughter, and Nikki let a few tears go before quickly wiping them away.

" You know I love you, right?" Nikki didn't answer, she just nodded.

" If you ever feel overwhelmed you can always ask for help. That's what we're here for, okay."

" Okay." Nikki answered quietly. Jane patted Nikki's knee, and sat Gracie next to her.

" Why don't we have lunch, and just put this week behind us, huh?"

Nikki nodded while Gracie scooted closer to her big sister laying her head on her shoulder. It was as if Gracie knew Nikki needed a hug, and Nikki wrapped an arm around her little sister. Even though this ten month old baby could never understand all the problems Nikki was facing, somehow the affection made her feel better.

Jane is sitting alone in the Division One Cafe, Angela comes over and brings her daughter a bowl of oatmeal with some toast and a side of mixed fruit. Jane idly picks up her spoon, and is quietly stirring her oatmeal. Angela is concerned that something is bothering her.

" What's the matter, you don't like your oatmeal?" Angela asked her.

" No, it's not that. It's Nikki, she doesn't seem like herself lately." Jane told her. Angela takes a seat across from her daughter.

" Has she talked to you about whatever's bothering her?"

" She doesn't seem to want to talk much to anybody. I want to help her, but I can't if I don't know what's wrong." Angela stands up, walks behind Jane and rubs her back.

" Sounds like someone else I know." Jane mustered a half smile as she sighed.

" Yeah..I just wish in this case, she didn't take after me. I just love her so much, and I want her to be happy."

Angela felt bad seeing Jane so frustrated. She wanted to be able to help her fix this, but the truth is neither of them knew how since Nikki wasn't talking to anyone. For now all Angela could do was offer some words of encouragement.

" You know, another way she is like you, Jane is that she's strong. I'm sure whatever it is, she'll be able to get through is, and she knows her mothers love her."

" I hope so." Jane said turning to her food trying to get a quick bite to eat before heading off to work. On top of her problems at home, Jane had a tough case to solve, and admittedly the detective was beginning to feel out of control.


	4. Chapter 4

Nikki was walking through school talking to Olivia. They'd just come out of their third period class, and were talking at their lockers. It was yet another Monday and another long week ahead of them. So far nothing happened this morning, and the girls engaged in idle chit chat about their weekend.

"So what'd you do while you were home?" Nikki asked Olivia.

"I hung out with Luis, mostly. I didn't feel like leaving the house, and I feel better knowing where he is."

Nikki knew that Camren and Maria lived near Olivia, and she felt bad for her. At least Nikki had the luxury of forgetting about them when she was home.

"Have you talked to your parents about any of this?" Nikki asked.

"No, I really don't want to worry them, especially about Luis. They may never let him outside. I imagine you haven't mentioned anything either."

"No. I don't know what they can really do. My mom can't arrest them for picking on me."

Nikki just shook her head. It was certainly a frustrating situation, and she felt like she had no answers. The incident with Mikey groping her in the hallway had been on her mind all weekend. It was really bothering her, but what was bothering her more was worrying whether or not Matt would find out about it. She knew if Matt found out Mikey grabbed her ass in the hallway there'd be a fight, and Nikki didn't want her boyfriend to get in trouble.

Olivia headed to class, and Nikki made her way down the hallway for lunch. She knew in that cafeteria, Camren and his friends would all be there, and she walked slowly dreading another moment with them while hoping she could get through this day. Nikki was so deep in thought she was startled by Matt who was waiting for her around the corner.

"Hey, did I scare you?" Nikki let out a nervous laugh trying to appear calm and collected.

" Uh...sorry. I wasn't paying attention. I'm better now." Nikki told him while smoothing out her shirt, and hooking his arm while they walked down the hallway.

" So how was your weekend?" Matt asked.

" It was good. It was nice to just relax, and hang out at home."

Matt pulled her in, and kissed the top of her head.

" Good, I'm glad you got to take a break."

Nikki smiled, but all she could think about was entering that cafeteria, and having to face those kids with whatever they had to say this time. Her chest felt tight, and her throat went dry as they approached the doors. Matt noticed immediately the girl on his arm was feeling distressed. He turned to face Nikki, and kissed her forehead.

" Hey, are you okay?"

" I'm just nervous about passing them in the lunch line. I hope they don't say anything."

" Don't worry, I already grabbed lunch for you. It's at the table. I figured you wouldn't want to walk past them."

Nikki stood back and smiled at her boyfriend. He really could be sweet, and he genuinely cared about her.

" You did?"

Nikki leaned in and kissed him.

" Thank you."

The two of them walked in, and sat to join their friends.

Jane walked down to Maura's office to discuss the case. She walked in and sat in the chair across from her desk. Digging for information was certainly proving to be a daunting task. They were hoping to find where this group may have gotten a hold of their explosives. Of course a racist hate group isn't just going to stroll into a store, and purchase lots of explosives. It was likely an underground deal. Other than their suspects being racist white guys with a size ten shoe, finding an identity seemed bleak. Jane sits slumped at Maura's desk with her chin in one hand, while Maura takes the other one.

" You look so frustrated." Maura told her, her voice filled with concern.

" I just needed some quiet. My head is spinning with crime scene photos and footage, the arsons, and nothing but masked suspects." Jane shuts her eyes tight and sighs.

" I don't know, Maura...I just don't know."

Maura squeezed Jane's hand, reassuring her.

" You'll get 'em, Jane. I know you. You're better at this than anyone I know. You've got this."

Jane mustered a half smile while Maura came around behind Jane, wrapping her arms around her love's shoulders. Jane leaned her head against Maura's while letting herself relax a bit. Maura always had a way of putting Jane at ease. The warmth of her embrace, that lovely scent that was uniquely hers, and the kindness of the doctor's heart always made Jane feel like she could face anything, and that she wasn't alone. Jane turned to Maura leaving a soft kiss on her lips.

" I love you."

" I love you, too."

Nikki is in the locker room changing after soccer practice. She donned her favorite Slipknot t-shirt, skinny black cargo pants, and her Doc Martens. Her look was one that would often be under the eye of scrutiny, but she never apologized for it. The most important part of Nikki's ensemble of course was her jewelry. She wore her chained and studded bracelet that Thereasa gave her for her fifteenth birthday, and an opal ring Maura gave to her this past Christmas. She remembered how Maura told her that in the middle Ages, the opal said to offer good luck because it possessed all the virtues of the gemstone's colors that it reflected. Maura told Nikki she wanted her to have all the luck in the world. Nikki talked some with another girl on her soccer team, Charise Dawes. Charise was sorting her gym bag while Nikki finished getting changed.

" Hey, you did good out there today." Charise told Nikki.

" Thanks."

" Are you ready for the game against St. Dominick?" Charise asked.

" As ready as I'll ever be."

" I hope everybody's ready after they crushed us the last time." Charise said.

Nikki just nodded while she gathered her things. She was glad the conversation was brief and about soccer. She'd seen Olivia there, but luckily she had to head right to work, so Nikki didn't have to get into her problems. Nikki said a quick goodbye to Charise before heading out to her car. The day had gone fairly well until Nikki saw Camren and Maria in the parking lot where their father was there to pick them up. Nikki got flustered, and avoided eye contact. She was always nervous around them worried what they might say or do. Nikki never wanted to stoop to their level, and start trouble by insulting them back. Her friend, Ty wasn't afraid to give them a taste of their own medicine, but Nikki preferred to keep a low profile.

Aside from having gay parents, Nikki would get hassled from time to time for her look. People like the Ames kids didn't understand Goths, and thought they were weird. Even though Nikki was a little more low key, her look was enough to turn a few heads, particularly those not used to it. Camren and Maria gave her their usual look of distain, but what really bothered Nikki was the look from their father. Raymond Ames had heard his children talk about Nikki, but he'd never seen her. When Raymond looked at her, he made no effort to hide how appalled he was. It was as if he was in disbelief of what he was seeing, which made Nikki truly uncomfortable.

As they drove away, Nikki slumped back to her car in a haze, and just sat in the driver's seat staring at the steering wheel. This experience really had Nikki upset. It was one thing for some smart ass classmate of hers to have something to say, but for an adult to be so cruelly judgmental really baffled her. Nikki swallowed hard to try and stop the tears as she headed home.

Jane was flipping through the files on her desk completely zoned out. Between the goings on at home, and the grocery store shooting that didn't seem to have any obvious conclusion, Jane needed something to keep her mind off her stress. She just wished she was able to focus, and see what she wasn't seeing. Before long Korsak came in the room with something that might be useful.

" Hey Jane, we may be on to something." Korsak said with papers in his hand.

" What've we got?"

" I talked to a firearm dealer in the North end that told me two men came in to him three times in the past two weeks purchasing 5.56mm ammunition."

"Those are for M16's. It certainly sounds like our shooter. Did the dealer give you a description?"

" Nothing except two white men in dark clothes under baseball caps. It seems they left a paper trail. The ammunition was purchased with a credit card under the name, Charles Lettermen. The address is in Dorchester."

" Well let's go talk to him."

Jane and Korsak arrived at the house of Charles Lettermen. Upon making their way up the driveway, a woman stepped out on the porch. She looked to be in her late 40's early 50's with light brown hair pulled into a ponytail, and a brown sweater she wore over her sundress. She looked up at the two detectives a little caught off guard.

" May I help you with something?" The woman asked.

" Yes, we're Boston Homicide, Ma'am. We're looking for a Charles Lettermen." Jane told her.

" What is this in reference to?" The lady asked them even more confused.

" We're seeking information on a credit card purchase made in his name several times in the past couple weeks."

The woman furrowed her brow while adjusting her hair. She wasn't quite sure what the two of them were getting at.

" Well other than some groceries I've purchased for him, I don't see what else it could be. There must be some mistake. Mr. Lettermen is eighty-eight years old, and hasn't been out and about for quite some time."

Now it was the detective's turn to look confused.

" Ma'am what is your relation to Charles Lettermen?" Jane asked.

" I'm Leeza McGill, Mr. Lettermen's home health aide. I take care of him on a daily basis. His daughter, Marjorie lives in Pittsburg, and comes by twice a month."

Jane and Korsak talked more with Leeza about how she took care of Mr. Lettermen, and that she purchased groceries for him with money sent from his daughter. His bills were paid through money in his account, and no credit card was reported stolen. It seems the credit card was in fact stolen unbeknownst to the family. All the detectives could do was thank Leeza for her time before heading back to headquarters.

" Well, it doesn't look like an eighty - eight year old man on home health care is going around shooting people." Korsak said discouraged.

" So we're back at square one?" Jane huffed feeling equally discouraged.

" Maybe not. We still have the footage from the gun store to look at."

Both headed back to watch the security footage in hopes of finding something this time.

The Rizzoli - Isles home was sitting down to dinner. Baby Gracie was thoroughly enjoying her spaghetti, as it was smeared all over her face. Nikki was barely listening to her parents talk about their day while she stared into space picking at her food. The incident after soccer practice was on her mind all afternoon, and Nikki couldn't shake the horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. Food was certainly not her friend this evening. While Maura took the baby to get cleaned up, Jane took notice of her daughter's haze, and when she touched Nikki's arm it startled her.

" Hey, what's the matter? Are you not hungry?"

" Uhm...no, not really, I guess."

" Are you feeling okay, honey?" Jane asked brushing back her daughter's hair.

" Yeah, I'm okay. I think I'd just like to go to bed." Nikki said avoiding eye contact, and leaving the table.

" Okay."

All Jane could do was watch as Nikki once again left the dinner table quietly and barely ate anything. She tried desperately to let her daughter have space, and not push her to talk, but Jane didn't know how much longer she could keep this up. She wanted so bad to talk to Nikki, if only she had any idea of what to say.

It was the middle of the night when Nikki bolted straight up in bed totally panicked. Her heart was pounding so hard she could feel it in her ears. She had tears streaming down her face which Nikki didn't notice until one fell and hit her hand. Nikki was breathing heavy, trying to get her bearings. She couldn't remember what exactly it was she'd dreamt about that made her wake up scared and in tears, but whatever it was it was enough to alert Maura, who was in the bathroom at the time, and came in to see if Nikki was okay.

" Sweetheart, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Maura asked, taking Nikki's hand that was fisted in her sheets.

Nikki just shook her head unable to speak while Maura pulled her into a tight hug. She wrapped her arms around Maura as well softly crying into her shoulder. Maura gently rocked Nikki while rubbing small circles on her back. They were both quiet for awhile, and Nikki began to calm down. Just Maura being there made Nikki feel safe again. She's always had a kind heart, and Nikki knew Maura really loved her. She wasn't just the woman her mother married, Maura was her mother too. If only that's what outsiders could see as well. Maura pulled back, wiped Nikki's tears, and kissed her forehead.

" Are you okay?"

" Yeah." Nikki answered quietly.

" Honey, do you want to talk about it?" Maura asked taking Nikki's chin in her hand.

" No."

"Are you sure? It might make you feel better."

Maura tried to coax it out of her, but Nikki just shook her head.

" I'm tired." Nikki told her while laying back down, and Maura covered her up.

" Goodnight, feel better, Sweetheart." Maura said while she bent down to kiss her head.

Maura made her way back to bed after Nikki fell back to sleep, and curled up next to Jane who silently wrapped her arm around her wife's waist. The poor sad girl in the other room was really starting to worry both of her mothers who wanted to make her pain go away. At this late hour, all that could be done was to try getting some sleep, and rejuvenate for tomorrow.


	5. Chapter 5

The alarm clock the next morning startled Nikki awake as she reached over and slapped the OFF button. She took a deep breath in while raking her hands over her face, wishing she could have the night to do over again. It was a restless night's sleep for Nikki, and it was only Tuesday. She wanted so badly to play hookie, but asking to stay home would just raise more questions. Nikki slung her legs over the bed, but couldn't seem to find the motivation to get up and move just yet. She just sat there and pondered the day ahead of her. Another day of being stared at and whispered about in lunch, another day of Camren and his buddies constantly harassing her and putting down her family's way of life. She began to feel weak not standing up for herself, and wanting to avoid confrontation, but on the same token there was no way she could ever justify her parent's relationship to people so ignorant and unaccepting. Without the friends she had, Nikki was doubtful she would have made it this far.

Nikki finally pushed herself up, got dressed and decided to take the time to make herself coffee before school. Normally she was in a hurry to get to school, and avoid any inquisition, but this morning she just didn't have the energy to rush. Besides at this point, Nikki was pretty sure her parents knew something was wrong, she just wished she knew how to tell them. Finally the coffee was done. Nikki took in the heavenly smell of her dark roast coffee as she poured it in her thermos and headed off to school.

In the Division One cafe, Jane and Maura sat down together for breakfast. Maura had her banana nut oatmeal while Jane enjoyed the Mama Rizzoli special of bunny pancakes, and of course cutting the ears off before hand. While they enjoyed each other's company this morning, Jane and Maura still worried about Nikki. After last night and her nightmare, they were more desperate to know what had their daughter in such distress.

" Did she say anything to you about what she dreamt?" Jane asked.

" No, she didn't seem to remember exactly what it was. She looked so scared, Jane. It broke my heart to see her so terrified."

" I know. I wish she would talk to us. I want to know what the problem is. Do you think it could be something to do with school?"

"I don't know." Maura said. " It's a possibility. It's all I can think of that she'd be afraid to talk about."

Before long, Frost came downstairs after watching the gun store security video.

" Jane you should come upstairs. I think there's something on the security footage you should see."

Jane headed up to Brick, where she, Korsak and Frost were watching the gun store security video on the big screen. There wasn't anything peculiar about the video of the two men in black clothes buying ammunition, but one detail seemed interesting.

" I watched this video over and over again, until I finally noticed something. " Korsak told them while instructing Frost to freeze the two men on screen.

" You see these two men. The one on the left is significantly shorter than the one on the right." Korsak told Jane.

" So what does that mean?"

" In the video of the shooting, both men were the same height, and the only difference was the size shoe prints. The two men buying ammunition have an obvious height difference."

" So at least one of the men in this video isn't the same person." Jane said.

" Exactly. I mean for all we know it could be two different people."

While watching Jane noticed the shorter one brush back a bit of hair under his cap. She found that interesting, but she wasn't quite sure why.

Nikki walked to her locker after fifth period to change out her books. Her lunch period went okay, and other than some whispered comments from Mikey and Maria in English, there weren't any other problems, that is until she reached the hallway to her locker. Nikki could see from around the corner that Camren and Mikey were leaning on her locker.

" Shit." Nikki murmured to herself as she sighed and leaned back on the wall.

One of those boys was bad enough, but the two of them together were a nightmare. Nikki wished she could just pass it by, and not worry about it today, but she had math homework to turn in, and she needed her textbook. There was no other choice, but to grit her teeth, and hope for the best. As she headed toward her locker, the two boys were already smirking at her. They knew exactly what they were doing.

" Uhm...excuse me, I need to get in there." Nikki said timidly.

" Oh, do you." Camren said looking back momentarily. " Sucks to be you, then."

Both boys snickered while Nikki to hold her ground.

" Come on, guys. I really need to get into my locker." Nikki pleaded.

Still they refused to move, and continued to mock her, repeating her plea back to make fun of her. Nikki was quickly getting flustered, and didn't know what to do.

" Could you guys please move?"

" You gonna make me?" Mikey asked, getting in her face while she backed away.

" Move, dipshit." A voice said from the left side of them, the voice of one, Joey Capuano.

Joey was a popular football player, and everyone knew him. Both Nikki and the boys were equally taken aback by this.

" Don't you two losers have anything better to do? Get the hell out of here. Go to class or something." Joey told them.

Mikey and Camren tried to remain cool, but neither one was willing to mess with Joey, so they just backed off, and headed to class. Nikki continued to stand there stunned. This was the last person in the world she expected to come to her rescue.

" Are you okay?" Joey asked Nikki.

" Yeah." Nikki nodded " Thank you."

" No problem. Those guys were being jerks."

Although grateful for Joey's actions, Nikki was still puzzled as to what brought this on. She and Joey were from two completely different worlds. She was the gothic drummer girl with two Moms, and he seemed the typical high school jock who played football and dated cheerleaders. Nikki wasn't even aware Joey knew who she was, let alone someone who would stick up for her.

" I'm Nikki."

" I know who you are." Joey told her. " I'm Joey."

" I know who-" Both just stopped and giggled.

" So, Joey...if you don't mind me asking, what made you want to stick up for me? I mean, we've never really talked before."

" Well, let's just say, I know what you're going through."

" You do?"

" Yeah, my parents are gay too. I have two Dads."

This totally threw Nikki for a loop. This was a secret he apparently never told anybody. It made Nikki be able to let out a sigh of relief. Finally, she wasn't alone.

" Really, I never knew that."

" I've never told anyone in school before. I was teased so much for it in Junior High. When I got to High school, I kept it a secret until now." Joey told her relieved to have gotten that out.

" I'm sorry you had to go through that." Nikki told him.

" I'm sorry you're going through it now."

" Thanks." Nikki smiled.

The bell for the next period rang, and snapped them both back to reality.

" Oh, uhm I've gotta go." Nikki said.

" Yeah, me too. I'll see you around, Nikki."

" See ya."

Both of them headed to class. It was a good day for Nikki. Finally she had someone in school who really understood what she was going through, and who could relate to her. Later at the end of the day, Nikki was waiting by her car for Thereasa. Upon approaching her friend's car, Thereasa noticed Nikki was in a seemingly better mood. She had to know what brought this on.

" You look like you're doing better."

" You'll never believe what happened to me." Nikki told her.

" What happened?"

" Well, I was coming out of fifth period, and I was heading to my locker, when I saw Camren and Mikey leaning on it."

" Oh, man."

" Yeah, well I asked them to move, and of course they wouldn't, and who of all people comes to my rescue, but Joey Capuano."

" Wow, are you serious?"

" Yeah, turns out we have more in common than we thought."

" What do you mean?"

" Joey has two Dads."

Thereasa just leaned back against the car astonished. Many of the other jocks in school were cocky, and would show off to the girls in school, and brag about their sexual prowess. Neither of them expected the star football player to come to Nikki's rescue having been there himself.

" Wow, I never knew that." said Thereasa.

" Look do me a favor, and don't tell anyone I told you, at least for now. He's never told anyone in school, and I'm not sure how much he wants people to know."

" Sure, no problem."

Jane is at her desk going through the case file. She couldn't stop thinking about the video. Something about it still bothered her while she pondered the third accomplice. The detective had a gut feeling she knew who he was. Korsak came in the room seeing Jane intently studying the file.

" Something wrong, Jane?"

Jane bit her lip and sighed as she turned toward him.

" I want to talk to Jerry Palmer again."

" The witness from the shooting?"

" Yeah, I don't know why, but I have a feeling. I want to know more about him."

Korsak went to his computer, and ran Jerry Palmer's name to see what would turn up.

" Jerry Palmer, 22yrs old. He has no prior arrest records, has had several unpaid parking tickets, and has been living on unemployment for the past year and a half."

" Where from?" Jane asked.

" Beaumen Delivery Service. He used to drive a box truck for them before he was laid off last April."

" Let's go talk to them, see what they know about him."

The weekend was finally here, and Nikki decided to get out of the house for awhile, and get some pizza. She is at the counter waiting for her two mushroom slices, when out of the corner on her eye she sees Joey walk in. Nikki turned to face him, and Joey was as pleasantly surprised to see her as she was him.

" Hi."

" Hey, how are you?" Joey asked her.

" I'm doing okay."

Both quietly received their pizza in a moment of awkward silence.

" So...uhm, do you feel like eating together?" Joey asked. Nikki agreed, and the two made their way to a table and sat across from each other.

" Hey, I just want to thank you again for defending me that day, even though you don't really know me."

" It's no problem, really. I wish I'd had someone back then who knew what it felt like."

Nikki knew exactly what it was like, and she felt bad for him, especially since no one, not even Joey's friends knew about his parents.

" I just want you to know, I didn't tell anyone about your fathers. I won't if you don't want me to."

" Thank you, and it's okay. I told my buddy Rich about it. He's the only one of my friends who would understand. I've decided I'm done being quiet about it."

" That's good, good for you." Nikki told him earning a smile from Joey.

The two were eating pizza together, and truly enjoying each other. It was nice for both teens to have someone to talk to about their family life.

" So, how long have your Moms been married?" Joey asked.

" It'll be three years in July. They started dating when I was thirteen. How about your parents?"

" Going on ten years. My Dad met Phil after he and my mother got divorced, and they got married when I was seven."

" Do you see your mom much?" Nikki asked.

She was a little nervous when she didn't get an answer right away, worried she touched on a subject she shouldn't have, but momentarily he spoke up.

" She died of cancer when I was nine."

" Oh, I'm sorry."

" I'm okay." Joey told her.

Nikki felt a little flushed not knowing how to respond. She opted to change the subject.

" So...do you have any brothers of sisters?" Nikki asked.

" Yeah, I have a little sister, Alexia. She's nine."

" I have a little sister too. Gracie, she's ten months old."

Joey's sister was born through a surrogate parent with Phil as the bio Dad. Similar to Nikki's sister, Gracie who was born through artificial insemination, and carried by Jane. Joey and his family were always happy together, and nine year old Alexia has always been happy and unfazed by the fact that she has two Dads, and not a Mom, like the other kids had. All she knew was that her Daddies and her big brother loved her very much. Joey however was still concerned.

" I hope Lexi had an easier time than we've had so far. I really worry about what she'll go through. I hate to think about Junior High for her. I know how bad it was for me."

" I know what you mean." Nikki told him. " I sometimes wish my sister could stay a baby."

" She has you to help her, so I'm not too worried."

Nikki smiled. It was words to hear, but Nikki dreaded the day Gracie might come home crying because of someone's cruel words. These were modern times, and gay marriage was legal in Massachusetts, but it seems no matter where you are or how many gay couples are free to be the family they wanted to be, there are still some people who are indifferent to the idea, even enraged by it. Nikki could never understand why two of the same sex getting married made some people so angry. The two finished their lunch and bid one another goodbye. Before leaving, Joey told Nikki ' If those guys bother you again, I have your back.' She thanked him, and headed home. Nikki still worried about going to school on Monday, but she was grateful to have a friend with common ground.


	6. Chapter 6

Jane and Korsak entered the back lot of Beauman Delivery Service to talk to Jerry Palmer's Former employer. Men are bustling back and forth loading trucks, getting them ready for their shipments. The detectives approach a man with a clipboard standing outside one of the truck bays, and flash him their badges.

"Boston Police, Sir. May we speak with the person in charge here?"

"Sure thing. Hey Carl." The man calls out to his boss. He looked to be about in his fifties, average height, sandy blonde hair, and a little stocky. He strided over to the detectives a little confused to be visited by police.

"Hello, I'm Carl Radnor. What can I do for you?" He asked shaking their hands.

"We're from Boston Homicide. We'd like to ask you about a former employee of your, a Jerry Palmer." Jane asked.

Carl pondered the name for awhile before he finally remembered.

" Uh...yeah. He worked for me a little over a year ago."

"Do you remember much about him?"

"Not too much. He didn't leave that big an impression. He was always really quiet and kept to himself."

"Can you remember if anything happened with him that was out of the ordinary?"

"No, nothing that was unusual about him. He came to work, and did his job like he was supposed to. Like I said, he didn't really talk to anyone."

"Hey, you guys said you were from Homicide?"

"That's correct, Sir." Jane told him.

"Jerry's not in some kinda trouble; is he?"

"We're not sure yet. We're still exploring all the possibilities."

"Well I hope you find what you're looking for. Sorry I couldn't be of much help."

"No problem. Thank you for your time." Jane told him.

Jane and Korsak made their way back to the cruiser. This case was growing increasingly frustrating. They didn't seem to be any closer to a lead, but Jane wasn't ready to give up on Jerry Palmer yet. She still had a gut feeling about him.

"You think he's involved; don't you?" Korsak asked.

"I have a feeling. I don't know why it came up, but I just don't know about him. I listened to his boss talk about how antisocial he was, and he just seems to fit into all of this." With that they both head back to headquarters to dig deeper into Jerry Palmer.

After meeting with Joey, Nikki walked into school with hope that she might have a bearable school day, but hope quickly faded when she saw Olivia sitting outside of school sobbing while Ty sat next to her with his arm around her. Jessie and Thereasa were outside as well. Nikki quickly rushed up to her friends and sat on the other side of Olivia, placing her hand on her friend's shoulder.

"Livi, are you okay? What's wrong?"

"He threatened me. He and his friends, they threatened my family." Olivia told her while still sobbing.

"Camren threatened you? What did he say?" Nikki asked.

Olivia continued to sob and wipe away tears. Her friend was obviously terrified, and Nikki was deeply concerned. Ty elected to answer for her.

"The asshole was giving her a hard time this morning, and told her ' Tell that sand nigger, payback's a bitch.' "

Nikki was angry and upset all at the same time, and couldn't do anything but wrap both her arms around Olivia, who leaned into her friend's chest. She was crying and coughing, barely able to get her words out.

"I don't know where we're supposed to do; they live right down the street from us. We have a ten year old boy in the house, and I don't know what I'd do if he got hurt. I'm so scared."

"Its okay, Livi. Nobody's gonna hurt your family. It'll be alright."

Nikki didn't know how exactly she could promise her that, but she felt so horrible, and had to tell her something.

"You have to tell your mom about this." Nikki told her. Olivia looked up at her, her eyes red with tears.

"You do too, Nikki. Please."

She'd been avoiding it long enough, but it was the truth. This has gone on too long, and Nikki felt anger take over. When she was being picked on, it was easier for her to bury the pain, but seeing a friend in trouble made her see how much this has to stop. The kids headed into school, and Nikki walked through the hallway until she spotted Camren and Maria. This time she wouldn't let fear cripple her, and she was ready to give them a piece of her mind.

"What the hell is wrong with you two?"

Camren was quite surprised to see this new found confidence in Nikki, but still interested to see where this would go.

"You must think you have the right to treat people however you want. What's your father done to you, huh? How long has he been filling your heads with such hatred?"

"At least we know who our father is." Maria told her.

Nikki was totally taken aback and once again felt defeated.

"Yeah you didn't think we knew about that; did you? That you mom had you at sixteen, and you daddy up and bailed. Do you suppose that's why she turned to women? Because your whore of a mother got knocked up, and no man would have her?"

This upset Nikki who shoved him away from her while Thereasa who heard the tail end of the conversation came and pulled Nikki away. Nikki was angry and truly frustrated with the situation. She hated how she felt going to school every day, hated seeing one of her friends so distraught this morning, and especially hated hearing Camren speak that way about her mother. Nikki knew her mother loved her dearly, but there were still a lot of insecurities she had, and a lot of unanswered questions about her father. It was an issue she was sensitive about, and Camren knew just how to feed into that. Nikki's mind was going a mile a minute, and she wasn't sure she'd even be able to focus in class.

Back at BPD a tired homicide squad was digging up everything possible on Jerry Palmer. He was merely a witness before, but in light of new evidence he became a person of interest. Jane had a gut feeling about this guy after watching the gun store footage, and when she had a feeling she was usually right. Detectives were able to track down the address of his two year leased apartment in the south end of Boston. It seems any dealings needed to be made through this hate group were made through him, or at least this was the clue they were hoping to find, and finally be able to stop these people from hurting someone else.

School felt especially long for Nikki that day. She couldn't focus at all, as Camren's cruel words replayed over and over in her head. Nikki was driving home so upset she was in tears. She started off trying to keep her cool, but at some point she just didn't care anymore. Things had finally reached their boiling point, and Nikki couldn't hold on anymore. She walked in the house, her face red and tear stained. Jane and Maura were sitting on the couch when she got home, and both her mothers were alarmed seeing Nikki crying.

"Hey Sweetheart, what's going on? Come sit down, honey." Jane told her while Nikki took a seat between them.

The second Nikki sat down she just unloaded and started sobbing. Jane wrapped her arms around her while Maura rubbed the top of her head. Then Maura reached for some tissues for Nikki to dry her eyes. Jane kept a tight hold of her daughter while holding her hand and trying to get Nikki to calm down enough to speak up.

"Nikki honey, what happened? You can tell us. What's been going on?"

Nikki took a deep breath to center herself and finally confided in her mother.

"It's been so hard for me to be at school lately." Nikki cried while wiping away her tears.

"Why sweetie, what happened?" Jane asked.

"Some of the kids in school have been giving me a hard time about our family. About me having two moms. I've tried to ignore it, and try not to let it bother me, but I can't anymore."

Nikki started to cry again, and Jane hugged her tight and kissed her head.

"Sweetheart, you shouldn't feel you have to ignore something like that. It's wrong for those kids to treat you this way."

"It didn't know what to do. After today I..." Nikki sighed covering her head.

"What about today, honey?"

"This one boy, Camren ...he and his sister pick on me the most. They knew about you having me at sixteen. I don't know how, but they knew, and ...he called you a whore."

Nikki cried while Jane kissed her forehead.

"Nikki, how long has this been going on?"

"A few months now."

"Does the principal know about this?"

Nikki just shook her head 'No', while Jane brushed an errand hair behind her daughter's ear.

"Baby, why didn't you tell me? I've been so worried about you. I wanted to be able to help you."

"I was afraid if I told on them it would make things worse. I'm afraid of them. They've been in all kinds of trouble before."

Jane took Nikki's chin in her hand and looked her in the eye as she spoke.

"Sweetheart, listen to me, okay. I won't let anything bad happen to you, I promise. This isn't going to continue; I won't let it." Jane told Nikki while kissing her forehead.

"You stay home awhile, alright. I'm going into school tomorrow to talk to your principal. We'll get something worked out somehow; okay?"

Nikki nodded and Jane kissed her daughter's head once more before stepping up to make some phone calls. Nikki turned toward Maura who wrapped both arms around her, and gently stroked her hair. Nikki had no idea where things would go from here or what would be in store for her once she returned to school, but she felt more relieved than expected finally confiding in her parents about what's been going on. Hopefully things could now start to be resolved, or at least become bearable.

That evening after dinner, everyone was turning in for the night. It was a quick and quiet dinner where Nikki didn't feel much like talking. She was emotionally drained from keeping this secret for so long on top of her day at school today, and it's all taken a toll on her. Jane was finishing her shower while Maura was in the nursery with Baby Gracie, rocking her to sleep. She looked down at her baby girl as her eyes fluttered shut, wondering what life might be like for her. Surely there will be people who will shy away from the norm, but when it came time for Gracie to attend school, more and more people will be accepting of a family with two mothers. Jane came in the room and kissed the top of her baby's head, while wrapping her arms around Maura.

"You think things will be different for her?" Maura asked Jane.

"I hope so." She answered while gently stroking her daughter's hair.

"I just hate to think of both of these girls going through this. It's not fair for kids to have to face such adversity."

Maura kissed Gracie's head before placing her sleeping form in the crib. She was safe here, at home with a loving family taking care of her, but she would soon grow up and unfortunately have to face the big bad world out there. Both Mommies held on to each other as they gazed down at their precious baby.

"We've got strong girls here in our home. They'll be okay."

Jane kissed the back of her wife's head before going in to check on Nikki. She was lying awake as suspected. Jane made her way to the side of the bed, and sat down. Nikki looked up at her mother, and offered a sad smile.

"How ya doin, kiddo?"

"As good as can be expected, I guess." Nikki shrugged.

Jane brushed back her daughter's hair. She could immediately tell there was something else on her mind that she seemed to have trouble verbalizing. Finally Nikki looked at her mother and spoke up.

"Mom, these kids that have been hassling me, they've been giving Olivia a hard time too. Camren threatened Olivia's family."

Jane sat up immediately concerned.

"What did he say?"

Nikki could barely form the words they were so cruel and hateful. She opted to whisper the statement in her mother's ear, and Jane was instantly appalled.

"Does this 'Camren' have a last name?"

"Ames. I'm really worried about Livi, Mom. She was really upset today."

"Don't worry, honey. I'll make sure everything is taken care of. This will not continue."

"Thank you." Nikki uttered quietly.

Jane hugged and kissed her daughter goodnight, and braced herself to everything she wanted to say at school the next day, and address the apparent lack of discipline.

While Jane was planning to go to school this morning, Frost and Korsak left together to track down Jerry Palmer at his apartment. As the case progressed this man grew more and more suspicious with the low profile he'd kept at his previous job, and the security footage that portrayed a man clearly fitting his height and build. Finally the two detectives reached his apartment door and Korsak knocked.

"Jerry Palmer, Boston Police, open up."

They waited awhile, but there was no answer. Korsak knocked again, and still no response. Before long Jerry came around the corner, saw two detectives at his door, and took off down the stairwell. Frost and Korsak were soon after him.

" Police! Stop right there!" Frost shouted after him. Jerry managed to get down the street and around the corner before Frost caught up with him and pinned him against the wall cuffing him. Korsak took hold of the backpack Jerry was wearing.

" You have no right to do this! I didn't do anything!" Jerry protested.

" If you didn't do anything, then why'd you run away?" Korsak asked.

Jerry Palmer was brought back to BPD headquarters for questioning of his recent suspicious activity. He was placed in a chair in the interrogation room and shrugged out of Frost's grip. Korsak sat in front of him after having searched his backpack. Jerry merely glared at the table refusing to look up.

" This is a receipt from a gun store we have reason to believe sold ammunition to those responsible for the shooting at Rawlings Grocery several weeks ago. You wanna explain this?" Korsak asked him.

" So what? People are allowed to own guns in this country last time I checked."

" Last time I checked, most ordinary people don't own M16's. We have security footage of two men buying 5.56mm ammunition for that particular gun." Korsak told him as he showed Jerry still shots of the video. " This looks a lot like you." Korsak said while he pointed.

Jerry rubbed his hands over his face. He knew he was busted, and didn't know what to say next.

" Look, I...I didn't shoot anyone, okay. I was just a patsy."

Korsak leaned on the table looking directly into Jerry's eyes.

" I want a name."

" I can't. They'll kill me."

" Who's 'They'? Talk to me, Palmer. Give me a name."

" What's gonna happen to me if I talk?" Jerry asked timidly.

He wasn't the tough guy he'd been upon arrival anymore. Now he was truly scared for his life.

" You cooperate and tell us who these guys are, and we'll see to it that you remain unharmed." Korsak told him.

" There's this old closed down theater on 3rd street. They work underground. I was told to bring the weapons to him there, but I only saw the front door."

" Who was he?"

" He only gave me a first name. It was Steven. He was in all black, I didn't get a good look at him except for that he was white."

At last they had a location, and only a first name, but it was a start. Jerry would be detained while there was a warrant to search his apartment for anymore crucial evidence. Frost was at the computer looking up the closed down theater, and this 'Steven'.

Jane made her way purposefully down the hallway of the high school toward the principal's office. As she passed by, her gold detective's badge didn't go unnoticed by several of the students, and many wondered what was going on. Jane came through the front door of the office and up to a lady behind the counter, who looked up at her.

" May I help you, Ma'am?"

Jane was all ready to spout out her detective title, but at this time it was more important to be a parent, and not a cop.

" Yes hi, I'm Jane Rizzoli, my daughter is Nicolette Rizzoli. I need to speak to the principal."

In fact giving her title was of no need as the woman noticed Jane's badge, and paged Principal Healy, alerting him of her arrival. Moments later she was escorted to his office. Upon entry Jane was greeted by the principal, and another man sitting in front of his desk. He was introduced as Camren's father, Raymond Ames who coincidentally was called into school that morning concerning an incident with Camren.

" Please, have a seat, Detective."

Raymond raised an eyebrow at the mention of her title.

" Detective huh? Seems affirmative action has really worked to your advantage, Ms. Rizzoli."

Jane felt the heat rise up in her body, and immediately wanted to slug this guy. She knew his addressing her with 'Ms.' was a deliberate dig at her. Before Jane could respond Principal Healy intervened.

" Now folks, let's not make this more heated that it has to be. We're here to discuss the issue at hand. It seems there's been an ongoing feud between your children."

" My daughter came home sobbing yesterday, Mr. Healy. I'd say it's much more than a feud at this point." Jane rebutted.

Mr. Ames merely chuckled in a condescending manner, smoothed out his button down shirt, and turned to face Jane as he spoke.

" Well now, I've spoken to my son about the situation, Ms. Rizzoli, and from what I understand it seems your girl is blowing things out of proportion."

" Really, how is that?" Jane snapped back, trying to curb her anger.

" Quite frankly, the way she represents herself among her peers, she really brings the ridicule upon herself."

The principal tried to intervene and calm the situation, but Jane was already on fire, and she cut him off before he could say anything.

" What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

" Coming to school dressed like the Devil Himself. I can only guess it comes from being exposed to such a deviant lifestyle."

" And just what is wrong with my lifestyle?!" Jane spat out, already standing with her hands on her hips.

It was all she could do to keep from punching this guy out. It was evident from the attitude of this boy's father where his son learned to be so hateful. It only made Jane's heart ache more for Nikki having to face this everyday at school. Principal Healy stood up hoping for this not to turn ugly.

" Alright now, let's just calm down and take a breath. We can discuss the best way to handle this."

Jane hadn't heard any of it, and was focused on the adamant and arrogant pastor, who didn't seem fazed at all by the seething detective.

" You think I can't be a good parent just because I happen to be married to a woman? My daughter may have two moms, and she may look a little different, but she's a good girl, and your kids have no right to treat people the way they do!"

Jane was almost yelling at this point while the thrust a finger in Raymond's face. Now it was his turn to be indignant.

" You think my son deserved what he got today? You should see the bruise on his face." Raymond argued, both of them now standing.

Principal Healy raised his voice to put an end to this.

" Hey, ho! Everyone just sit down, and lets discuss this like adults!"

Both parents huffed out a breath as they took a seat.

" Now clearly a shouting match isn't going to get us anywhere. Mr. Ames, it is my understanding that this is not the first time something like this has happened with Camren. Several people have complained about harassment and racial slurs from both of your children. It's not something I will tolerate here, and it's certainly not something that should be tolerated by you."

" Shouldn't my children feel entitled to their own opinion?"

" A difference on opinion is one thing, Mr. Ames, but we have a zero tolerance policy against prejudicial comments or threats made against other students. You should be ashamed for allowing this kind of behavior."

" So what's going to happen?" Raymond asked feeling a little embarrassed for being chastised.''

" Well first off, I've looked over Nicolette's schedule, and I plan on transferring her out of any classes with the Ames children to avoid any possible confrontation. I've also granted her a week off of school."

" Thank you." Jane nodded.

" And as for Camren, Mr. Ames. After all that's gone on, and the fight that happened in the cafeteria, I'm suspending him for two weeks."

" What! You're not going to do anything about the boy who hit him?!"

" He's been suspended too, Mr. Ames. I suggest you take your son home, and sit down with your children and discuss how to better treat people. If there are any more incidents like this one, you can trust that there will certainly be legal action. Do you understand?"

" Yes Sir." was all Raymond could say as left the office, shoulders slumped.

Principal Healy turned toward Jane having regretted such circumstances to have taken place.

" Detective Rizzoli, I truly do apologize for all your daughter had to go through. I feel terrible that she'd been afraid to come to anyone."

" Thank you Mr. Healy. I think in time she'll be okay."

Jane left the office still calling down from that heated confrontation, but also relieved that Nikki now had hope. As she headed out she caught a glimpse of Raymond Ames and his son. The bruise on his left cheek stood out a bright purple, and it didn't seem to dampen the boy's spirits. Jane wondered who could have been the one to deliver as she imagined a much deserved blow. While passing them, Camren looked up at her with a smirk on his face. This kid was a cruel little punk, and admittedly Jane was glad someone hit him. She shook herself off, and made sure to call home and check in before she headed out.


	7. Chapter 7

The detectives are on their way out to the theater on 3rd st. After some digging they found it was leased out to a Steven Ryder, white male, 32yrs old, 6ft 2in, and 220lbs. He has a record for multiple counts of assault, armed robbery, and making terroristic threats. They ran the partial prints from the shell casing at the shooting and it was a positive match in CODIS for Steven Ryder. Jane, Frost, and Korsak left with several patrol units backing them up. They wanted to be fully prepared for whatever they may walk into.

Patrol units made haste surrounding the theater while still trying to be discrete. The three detectives pulled alongside the building and slowly began working their way inside, weapons drawn. Korsak stepped in first followed by Jane and Frost. The three of them swept the top floor of the theater that hadn't been operational for many years and has collected cob webs along the pillars. They searched down the aisles and around every hallway, but still all was quiet. Before long Jane discovered a basement entrance once the upstairs was cleared. She slowly pushed the door open, took three steps, and noticed a wire across the fourth step. She'd almost missed it, but was lucky enough to avoid it. Frost was soon behind her, and she warned him of the trip wire. Slowly they came down the steps not knowing who or what they'd find. Once downstairs their surroundings told the whole story. On the back wall, a large Nazi flag was pinned up, along with pictures of groups giving Hitler's famous salute, an array of heavy artillery locked in steel cages, many stacks of flyers saying things like "Fight for White Power" and " Why your government is lying to you.", and a group of black coats hung up in a corner. If there was any doubt as to this being the right place before, it was immediately erased. Over on a desk by the window was a laptop that was open and still on. It was evidence that someone was still here. Just before Jane and Frost were about to start looking around the room, a figure appeared from nowhere, whooshed past Jane, then turned pointing his gun. Jane and Frost pointed their weapons back at the man who stood eyes locked and almost expressionless.

"Boston Police! Drop your weapon!" Jane shouted.

The gunman looked back and forth between Jane and Frost for a moment before bolting up the steps. He was chased upstairs, and out into the lobby where he was met by several uniformed officers, and he no longer had anywhere to go.

"Drop it!" was shouted at him.

He had no other choice but to simply comply, and he was carted off by police. Two others were taken in hiding elsewhere in the building in the midst of their chase. On the way back the perps were brought in, interrogated, and matched to the scene of each crime. They would be taken to jail, and Jane took a sigh of relief that it was finally over.

Jane took a moment to celebrate with her colleagues at The Dirty Robber, having finally closed this case. They enjoyed a few beers, a few war stories, and took comfort that evil was punished, and all was right with the world. Jane was relieved but also exhausted, and just wanted to get back to her family.

It was into the evening when Jane arrived home. After a day with more excitement then she'd bargained for, and an evening of filling out more paperwork, it was good to be back. She quietly hung up her coat, and kicked off her shoes before making her way to the kitchen where Maura sat at the counter with a cup of tea flipping through the paper.

"Hey Babe." Maura greeted.

Jane came behind Maura, wrapped her arms around her waist, and rested her head on her wife's shoulder.

"Ugh..it's so good to be home. I'm so glad it's all over."

"You caught both shooters?"

"Yeah, a whole team of them hiding out in an old theater. It was a hell of a lot of paperwork today, but I'm happy for it to be over."

Maura leaned back and kissed Jane's cheek, happy to see her relieved.

"So how'd it go at school this morning?" Maura asked.

"Oh, don't even get me started."

"Why, what happened?"

"The other kid's father was there." Jane told her.

"Really, how did that go?"

"God, I wanted to punch that guy in the face. He was so obnoxious."

"That bad, huh?"

Jane gave her the whole story of her encounter in the principal's office with this ignorant man, Raymond Ames. How he saw nothing wrong with what his children were doing, and how he thought Nikki's appearance was the result of a 'deviant lifestyle' at home. Jane told her how she felt so enraged by the situation, and Mr. Ames just smirked at her like he thought it was funny. Maura was in just as much disbelief as Jane was how this man could be so nonchalant regarding the obvious prejudicial behavior of his offspring, not that he was without hatred of his own.

"It's true what they say, that the world is made up of all different kinds of people, even the ignorant ones." said Maura finishing off her tea.

"Believe me he is an example of ignorance at its finest. It's not hard to see where the kids got it from. It looks like somebody finally retaliated though."

"What do you mean?"

"As I was leaving, I saw Mr. Ames leave with his son, and someone must have hit him because he had a big bruise on his face."

"Really, wow."

"Yeah, I know as parents, we're supposed to teach our kids not to solve their problems with violence, but I have to admit, it was good to see him taught a lesson." Jane told her.

"Well, you reap what you sow, right?"

"So how'd everything go here? Is Nikki doing alright?"

"She slept most of the morning, we all had pancakes together around ten, all in all it was a nice day, and I think she was grateful to have a break. She just went to bed an hour ago."

"Okay, I'm gonna quick peek in on her, and then I'll be upstairs."

Jane quietly stepped into Nikki's bedroom, and was relieved to see she was asleep. The poor girl has been through so much these past few months, and those tears in Nikki's eyes when she came home yesterday really broke Jane's heart. She never wanted her daughter to hurt like that again. Not wanting to wake her, Jane gently brushed the hair from in front of Nikki's face and kissed her forehead, then quietly exited leaving her to rest.

In the morning, Jane was up with a cup of coffee in hand. She was as of yet the only one awake, besides Jo Friday who was pacing around her feet. She sat for awhile flipping through a magazine before Nikki finally came out from her room looking well rested for the first time in awhile.

"Hey, baby girl. How'd you sleep?"

"Good." Nikki answered and Jane stood to give her a hug.

Nikki wrapped her arms around her mother and nuzzled into her shoulder. It was nice now not having to worry about getting up to face an eventful school day, and she wished she'd come forward long ago.

"I'm glad I told you."

"I'm glad you told me too, Honey. We're here to help you no matter what it is, and we'll find a way to work it out somehow."

"I'm sorry if I caused you to worry about me. I guess I was just afraid."

Jane kissed her daughter's forehead and cupped her face.

"Sweetie, you have nothing to be sorry for. You did nothing wrong, okay. I can only imagine what that must have been like for you every day. I'm sorry you had to go through that."

"I'm just happy to have some time off."

"What do you say we have some breakfast, huh?" Jane said her arm still around Nikki.

It surprised Nikki a bit to find herself in such a good mood. Yes, she was relieved to have come forward with her troubles at school, but there was also something more. Nikki had been granted a week off from school, and her parents weren't working today, so the morning felt kind of special. No matter what others had to say Nikki loved her family very much, and felt grateful to have two loving parents who cared for her, worried for her, and would do anything in their power to keep their children safe and always feeling loved. After she'd had a relaxing morning enjoying breakfast with her family, and watching TV most of the day, Nikki received a phone call from Thereasa.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Thereasa asked.

"Not bad."

"I heard Mr. Healy gave you a week off?"

"Yeah, and he switched me out of some of my classes. Hopefully it'll help; I'm just bummed not to be in lunch with you guys anymore."

"So, you missed all the excitement yesterday."

"Why, what happened?" Nikki asked her.

She knew her mother had gone to school, and she hoped that wasn't what Thereasa was talking about.

"Ty and Camren got in a fight."

"What?"

"Yeah, Ty walked up to Camren in the cafeteria and just decked him. Told him it was for threatening Olivia, and to never go near her again. They both got suspended."

"Wow."

"So he won't be bothering anyone for awhile."

Nikki was glad to hear somebody finally shut him up and gave Camren a taste of his own medicine. Although she felt bad that Ty got suspended for it, and even more still she felt bad for Olivia.

"How's Olivia doing anyway? I didn't get a chance to talk to her after school."

"She seems to be doing better. I think she's happy Camren won't be around for awhile."

"Yeah, me too."

The girls talked on the phone a little while longer about music and movies, and it was good for Nikki to almost feel back to normal. Being at home was nice, but at the same time it gave her too much time to think. Nikki was switched out of the classes she shared with Camren and Maria which was a good thing, and Camren would be suspended for awhile which was also a good thing, but he wouldn't be suspended forever, and Nikki would soon have to return to school. She hoped switching classes would be enough.

It was into the evening now, and Nikki was watching a movie on the couch. They were finished with dinner, and Gracie had been put to bed. Maura came out after changing into pajamas and joined Nikki on the couch.

"Hey, anything good on TV?" Maura asked her.

"Office Space. It's an old 90's movie that's kind of weird sometimes, but I think I need a funny movie right now."

Maura just watched Nikki watch the movie for a moment while she giggled at one of her favorite parts. It was good to see her smile again even if it was for a little while. She could feel some residual tension in Nikki.

"You feeling any better, Honey?"

"Yeah, I am. I'm glad I finally talked to someone. I don't know why I didn't do it sooner."

"I know you were scared, we both do. Sometimes you feel lost when you don't know what to do, and its okay. It's human."

Nikki smiled and rested her head on Maura's shoulder. She knew Maura knew what it was like to feel lost sometimes, as well as socially awkward. Maura too had to be told that certain things were 'only human'. However no matter the strife this family had to face, or whether one lost their way, there would always be someone to bring them back.


End file.
